Cathy's Art Diary

Interesting exhibition at the Courtauld Gallery presenting works produced as part of a schools’ project looking at the gallery’s Van Gogh self-portrait. To coincide with two new site-specific commissions at the Courtauld Gallery by artist Rachel Jones students across the UK, local community members and families, have participated in free workshops, projects and events, exploring the picture to create their own artworks on the theme of ‘sense of self’. I was a bit unclear how Jones had fed into this but one work was responding to   her work. I loved this tiled version of the self-portrait where each person had painted a section in their own style also this stunning self-portrait by Ellie aged 17. A number of the works were presented in a studio style setting which was fun. Closed 15 February 2026

Charming exhibition at the Courtauld Gallery of prints and drawings by Wayne Thiebaud to compliment the main show of his paintings. The focus was a series of 17 prints produced as a book and portfolio called “Delights” mainly of food.   A few of them which had been left in the studio were coloured by Thiebaud. They were delicate works often of the same subjects as the paintings but produced as distinct art works. The show also included some of the plates for the prints. Closed 18 January 2026

Surprising exhibition at the Courtauld Gallery focusing on Wayne Thiebaud. I say surprising because if you only know these calm, pastel images from reproduction you assume they have a smooth finish but, in reality, the objects are almost sculptured in low relief paint. They are more complex that you think. The show included some early pieces which were darker in colour with loose brushwork. The images tend to be of displays of food, often in shop windows, or nostalgic trappings of sweet shops. They have a distinctively American feel even when the objects shown might have come from anywhere. A number of people around me were saying how they had a feel of a Hopper in their sense of nostalgia but also strangely loneliness. I think my favourite was the large picture of cakes and I had to go to the café and indulge after my visit. Closed 18 January 2026 Reviews Guardian Telegraph

Powerful exhibition in a pop-up space by Messums showing a selection of large sculptures by Laurence Edwards. The work looked majestic in the space and mainly consisted of life sized and over life sized male figures. There were also some fragmented faces. The main focus was three huge walking men statues which seemed to stride through the space. When I came to photograph them I realised they were all looking in different directions. I’d been the week before and found the gallery shut but they even looked imposing through the window. Closed 15 January 2025

Interesting installation in the Turbine Hall of Tate Modern by Máret Ánne Sara, a Sámi artist. The Sami people are indigenous to Northern Scandinavia and Sara draws on their reindeer herding traditions in the two works in this installation. The first one you see hangs reindeer hides floor to ceiling by electric cables. I hadn’t realised when I was there that these were impregnated with a scent released by the animal as a warning sign. I’ll have to go back and have a sniff as I felt this piece wasn’t big enough for the space. The main work was a maze-like structure made of branches based on the internal anatomy of the reindeer’s nose. I was so taken by that I missed that this too was scented and there were sculptures based on the animals ears. Another reason to go back and a lesson to read the blurb more carefully. Closes 6 April 2026 Reviews Times Guardian Telegraph    

Dense exhibition at Tate Modern examining modern art in Nigeria before and after independence. There was a lot to get across in this show and at times it was difficult to tell if it was an art exhibition or a history one. It was also hung thickly, often with works which we’re very similar to each other, which diluted their effect. I liked the way it was arranged by school or artist giving a good chronology but with overlaps. My favourite room, despite the hang, was the one dedicated to Ben Enwonwu, the first African modernist to gain international recognition. I was particularly intrigued by the seven sculptures down the centre of the room which my eye read as a choir which turned out to have been commissioned for the headquarters of the Daily Mirror. I liked the inclusion of a potter, Ladi Kwali. Favourite pieces included Bruce Onobrakpeya’s “Last Supper” and “Stations of the Cross” hung to resemble an altarpiece, Jimo Akolo’s colourful picture of Fulani horsemen and   Uzo ...